Essay
by
Tim
(731)
from
New Zealand
- Author's age: 27 years old
Summary
The world is running out of fossil fuel energy, and this means that we risk running out of sufficient food to sustain our global society.
Our current globalised system already fails one sixth of the world’s population. They starve while developed countries waste immense amounts of food. This current system cannot be relied on to solve the looming food and energy crisis. We need a fundamentally different set of priorities.
The world’s leaders must rise to the challenge of leading our global society through an urgently needed social transition if we are to sustain and improve society’s well-being.
(98 words)
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Comments
Again, I will use an argument I have already used somewhere else: if we would all consume like average Europeans, we would need 3 to 6 planets and if we would all consume like average Americans, we would need 5 to 10 (according to the Global Footprint Network). That can't be solved with technology.
Also, several scholars have already shown the limits of technology-based solutions. See for example:
* Alfredsson, E. C. (2004). “Green” consumption—no solution for climate change. Energy, 29(4), 513–524
* Huesemann, M. H. (2001). Can pollution problems be effectively solved by environmental science and technology? An analysis of critical limitations. Ecological Economics, 37(2), 271–287
I also doubt the ability and even intention of most world leaders to address the crisis that lie ahead. Aren't these issues so important for us to seriously engage them?
Kind regards,
Benoit
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To further the discussion in group and beyond this competition:
http://groups.google.com/group/agc-net
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